German parties agree to introduce quota for women on boards

Nov 18, 2013

PHOTO: German parties agree to introduce quota for women on boards

BERLIN - Chancellor Angela Merkel's
conservatives and the Social Democrats (SPD) agreed on Monday to
introduce legislation requiring German companies to allot 30
per cent of their non-executive board seats to women from 2016.

Negotiators from the two sides are in talks to form a
coalition government. They said the agreement would involve
listed companies and those with a works council.

Three weeks of coalition talks have made modest progress.
Both sides are making concessions but the conservatives want
their victory in September's election reflected in the deal.

Germany introduced voluntary targets for women in top
management positions in 2001, but little changed. In 2011
blue-chip companies agreed to try to boost women on boards,
again through voluntary targets.

The centre-left SPD had pushed for 40 per cent women on
boards in stages from 2021. The conservatives had resisted fixed
targets.
"This is an important signal to improve the career chances
for women and for greater equality in the labour market," said
Manuela Schwesig, who led the talks for the SPD.

Annette Widmann-Mauz, leading the talks for Merkel's
conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) and Christian Social
Union (CSU), called the agreement a breakthrough for women.

Under the new law, companies unable to appoint women to at
least 30 per cent of open board seats from 2016 would be required
to leave those seats vacant.
"It's a toad that we're going to have to swallow," said CDU
parliamentarian Michael Fuchs. "There are companies where that's
going to be difficult."

Women currently hold about 12 per cent of corporate board
seats, according to German media reports.

Among the 30 largest DAX companies, women have 101 of the
488 board seats, or 22 per cent, according to the DSW, Germany's
largest association of private investors.

The European Commission last year proposed requiring
companies with more than 250 workers and listed in European
Union countries to have 40 per cent of women on their boards by
2020. But Germany and other EU countries resisted. Germany said
those rules should be set at the national level.

Norway, which is not an EU member, imposed a 40 per cent
quota in 2003, a target reached in 2009. Norwegian companies can
be liquidated if they fail to reach the target.